MONICA MUSONDA

High-flying lawyer turned entrepreneur

Country: Zambia

Sector: Food Processing

Monica Musonda is founder and Chief Executive Officer of Java Foods, a food processing company based in Zambia. Monica's vision is to revolutionize the eating habits of the youth market by offering them affordable and nutritious food options made from local products. Monica is a dual-qualified English solicitor and Zambian advocate with over 15 years of experience in legal practice and corporate management, including being corporate counsel at the International Finance Corporation and for Aliko Dangote of Dangote Industries Limited.

Monica currently serves on the Boards of the Central Bank of Zambia and Dangote Industries Zambia Limited, and is Chairperson of Kwacha Pension Trust Fund, Zambia's largest single employer pension fund. She is a 2013 Young Global Leader (World Economic Forum) and Archbishop Desmond Tutu Leadership Fellow. Forbes Magazine and Africa Investor named her as one of the leading Young Power Women in Business in Africa in 2013 and 2014 respectively.

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Monica's Startup Story

The journey from advocate to entrepreneur has been an incredible one for Monica Musonda, who today is winning recognition around the world for her innovation and her leadership in Zambia and beyond.

Monica Musonda’s path to becoming an entrepreneur has been an interesting one. Born in Zambia, her education and training took her into a highly promising career as an international lawyer - she is a dual qualified English solicitor and Zambian advocate with over fifteen years post qualification experience. Her career took her into senior positions both in private practice (with Clifford Chance & Edward Nathan) and working as in house counsel at the International Finance Corporation in Washington DC. Her most recent corporate position, at Dangote Industries (Lagos, Nigeria) where she served as Director Legal and Corporate Affairs, was to be a key turning point. Monica was the project lead responsible for the Dangote Group’s $500m investment into Zambia to build the country’s largest cement plant, due to be completed in 2014.

Monica Musonda and her company Java Foods are a real inspiration, because they are testimony to the power of perseverance, tenacity, confidence in a great business idea, and a desire to build a powerful brand that can make a difference in the marketplace. Africa needs more women entrepreneurs like Monica to set an inspirational example of what can be achieved through sheer determination, self belief and leveraging the best advice and networks to achieve end goals.--- Melanie Hawken, LoA founder & editor-in-chief

Monica founded Java Foods to provide affordable nutrition to the southern African market. Her company seeks to revolutionize the eating habits of the youth market by offering them affordable and nutritious food options made from local products.

Monica on what she learned working for Africa's wealthiest entrepreneur, Aliko Dangote....

"Working with a visionary is always hard work. He never stopped working, which meant we never stopped working. On the flip side, he emphasized the importance of maintaining humility and focus, being driven and working hard and not being afraid to take calculated risks. His motto is 'nothing is impossible'. And he was right."

"Our goal is for eeZee to become East and Southern Africa’s leading quick meal option in the next five years."

Featured

The Market Matters 2017 African Agribusiness Entrepreneur of the Year Award has just been presented to Ms. Monica Musonda, founder and owner of Java Foods in Zambia. Ms. Musonda and Java Foods’ contribution to Africa’s agribusiness sector and food security was officially recognized during the Closing Banquet of the 2017 Making Markets Matter Executive Training Program for the African Agribusiness Sector in Somerset West, South Africa, on 11 May 2017. Java Foods joins a list of 8 other pioneering African entrepreneurs in receiving this honor.

Zambian businesswoman Monica Musonda has been awarded the MEDays 2016 Forum “Champion of the South” award by the Amadeus Institute, an independent Moroccan think-tank, at a ceremony in Tangiers, Morocco. The recognition was for her creation of her innovative company, Java Foods, which is a model for a new generation of business leaders.

Do you want to be a spectator or a participant in your country? Monica Musonda narrates her journey into entrepreneurship as a Zambian woman. Working for the richest man in Africa, her former employer Aliko Dangote asked “Where are the Zambian Banks & Factories?” Monica reflected on how Nigerians run their economy and this inspired her to actively participate in her own country’s economy.

Zambian entrepreneur Monica Musonda is the founder of Java Foods who produce the eeZee instant noodles brand. In a recent webcast, ''Secrets for a Successful Start-Up' webinar organised by The Tony Elumelu Foundation, Monica shared some of the lessons she has learnt in business and answered questions posed to her by participants. Below are 5 key lessons she has learnt in business.

In 2012 Monica Musonda left her 15-year career as a successful commercial lawyer to return to her home country Zambia and set up a food processing company, Java Foods. The company supplies the market with the eeZee instant noodles brand.

This month, the Choiseul Institute of France has just published its inaugural list of Africa’s 100 Most Promising Young Business Leaders Under the Age of 40, and making the rankings are seven women entrepreneurs, our Lionesses of Africa.

TechTrends, the Zambian web-based Technology Publication recently attended the Bongohive Insaka in Lusaka who hosted as their guest speaker Monica Musonda, the founder and CEO of Java Foods, a Zambian based food processing company known for it’s highly affordable ‘eeZee’ brand of noodles.

Read their interesting article in which Monica shares some of the best ways for any start-up business to progress and stresses the need for one to have passion in whatever business you want to start.

How we made it in Africa’s Dinfin Mulupi conducts a fascinating article interview with Monica Musonda in which she shares her plans for the company she founded, Java Foods; as well as the opportunities she believes exist in Africa for entrepreneurs; and finally she shares what she learnt working for Africa's wealthiest entrepreneur, Aliko Dangote.

Entrepreneur Advice

Learn from Monica's entrepreneur playbook

Monica's top advice....

“Have a vision and passion. Be courageous, focused and disciplined. Lastly, persist… it’s definitely not easy.”

- Monica Musonda founder and Chief Executive Officer of Java Foods, a food processing company based in Zambia. Monica's vision is to revolutionize the eating habits of the youth market by offering them affordable and nutritious food options made from local products. Monica is a dual-qualified English solicitor and Zambian advocate with over 15 years of experience in legal practice and corporate management, including being corporate counsel at the International Finance Corporation and for Aliko Dangote of Dangote Industries Limited.

Be innovative....

"There is no such thing as a free lunch, and there is no substitute for hard work. Be open to new ideas, especially with marketing tools. Choose the best way to sell your business effectively and efficiently. Take advantage of social media as well."

- Monica Musonda is founder and Chief Executive Officer of Java Foods, a food processing company based in Zambia. Monica's vision is to revolutionize the eating habits of the youth market by offering them affordable and nutritious food options made from local products. Monica is a dual-qualified English solicitor and Zambian advocate with over 15 years of experience in legal practice and corporate management, including being corporate counsel at the International Finance Corporation and for Aliko Dangote of Dangote Industries Limited.

- Monica Musonda is founder and Chief Executive Officer of Java Foods, a food processing company based in Zambia. Monica's vision is to revolutionize the eating habits of the youth market by offering them affordable and nutritious food options made from local products. Monica is a dual-qualified English solicitor and Zambian advocate with over 15 years of experience in legal practice and corporate management, including being corporate counsel at the International Finance Corporation and for Aliko Dangote of Dangote Industries Limited.

First focus on establishing your business in your home country....

“Let people know your product in your home market – it has to have a home, it has to be from somewhere – before you start spreading yourself too thin [by] exporting... There are all these nuances once you get your product outside of your country that you might not be able to control. I think build a strong successful brand, a strong successful distribution network, build supply chains which you understand in your country."

- Monica Musonda is founder and Chief Executive Officer of Java Foods, a food processing company based in Zambia. Monica's vision is to revolutionize the eating habits of the youth market by offering them affordable and nutritious food options made from local products. Monica is a dual-qualified English solicitor and Zambian advocate with over 15 years of experience in legal practice and corporate management, including being corporate counsel at the International Finance Corporation and for Aliko Dangote of Dangote Industries Limited. Monica currently serves on the Boards of the Central Bank of Zambia and Dangote Industries Zambia Limited, and is Chairperson of Kwacha Pension Trust Fund, Zambia's largest single employer pension fund.

It's often best for entrepreneurs to learn by doing....

“I think you have got to learn by doing. You may not have all the answers, you may not know the size of the market, you may not know how much the competition is selling. But if you get into the business, do your initial groundwork as much as you can – but get in there and then start gathering your own data.”

- Monica Musonda is founder and Chief Executive Officer of Java Foods, a food processing company based in Zambia. Monica's vision is to revolutionize the eating habits of the youth market by offering them affordable and nutritious food options made from local products. Monica is a dual-qualified English solicitor and Zambian advocate with over 15 years of experience in legal practice and corporate management, including being corporate counsel at the International Finance Corporation and for Aliko Dangote. Monica currently serves on the Boards of the Central Bank of Zambia and Dangote Industries Zambia Limited, and is Chairperson of Kwacha Pension Trust Fund, Zambia's largest single employer pension fund. She is a Selection Committee member of the Tony Elumelu Entrepreneurship Programme (TEEP) and a 2013 Young Global Leader (World Economic Forum) and Archbishop Desmond Tutu Leadership Fellow. Forbes Magazine and Africa Investor named her as one of the leading Young Power Women in Business in Africa in 2013 and 2014 respectively.

Networking is vital....

“It can get you through all the right doors. You need to learn to make new connections all the time. They can help a new business in one way or the other. Be careful of people coming into your inner circle just trying to bring you down. Know who your friends are. Take advice from the right people too.”

- Monica Musonda is founder and Chief Executive Officer of Java Foods, a food processing company based in Zambia. Monica's vision is to revolutionize the eating habits of the youth market by offering them affordable and nutritious food options made from local products. Monica is a dual-qualified English solicitor and Zambian advocate with over 15 years of experience in legal practice and corporate management, including being corporate counsel at the International Finance Corporation and for Aliko Dangote of Dangote Industries Limited.

Love what you do....

“It is the only thing that will keep you going in your new business venture. If you don’t, you might give up at the very first failure encountered if things don’t go your way.”

- Monica Musonda is founder and Chief Executive Officer of Java Foods, a food processing company based in Zambia. Monica's vision is to revolutionize the eating habits of the youth market by offering them affordable and nutritious food options made from local products. Monica is a dual-qualified English solicitor and Zambian advocate with over 15 years of experience in legal practice and corporate management, including being corporate counsel at the International Finance Corporation and for Aliko Dangote of Dangote Industries Limited.

Monica's best advice for other African women entrepreneurs....

“Have a vision and passion. Be courageous, focused and disciplined. Lastly, persist… it’s definitely not easy.”

- Monica Musonda is founder and Chief Executive Officer of Java Foods, a food processing company based in Zambia. Monica's vision is to revolutionize the eating habits of the youth market by offering them affordable and nutritious food options made from local products. Monica is a dual-qualified English solicitor and Zambian advocate with over 15 years of experience in legal practice and corporate management, including being corporate counsel at the International Finance Corporation and for Aliko Dangote of Dangote Industries Limited.

Aspiring women entrepreneurs should take the plunge sooner rather than later....

“I would have loved to have been younger and have less commitments… At this stage to fail is a lot more painful than if I failed at 20 or 25 or 30, for instance. I think it is a lot harder when you’re older, you have more commitments… I think there is never a perfect scenario for you to start a business – but I think if you are going to take the leap, the earlier the better.”

- Monica Musonda is founder and Chief Executive Officer of Java Foods, a food processing company based in Zambia. Monica's vision is to revolutionize the eating habits of the youth market by offering them affordable and nutritious food options made from local products. Monica is a dual-qualified English solicitor and Zambian advocate with over 15 years of experience in legal practice and corporate management, including being corporate counsel at the International Finance Corporation and for Aliko Dangote of Dangote Industries Limited. Monica currently serves on the Boards of the Central Bank of Zambia and Dangote Industries Zambia Limited, and is Chairperson of Kwacha Pension Trust Fund, Zambia's largest single employer pension fund. She is a 2013 Young Global Leader (World Economic Forum) and Archbishop Desmond Tutu Leadership Fellow. Forbes Magazine and Africa Investor named her as one of the leading Young Power Women in Business in Africa in 2013 and 2014 respectively.

Plan, plan, plan....

“With any new business, we need to know what exactly we want to do, and how we want to do it, and where you want it to go. However, she said you should not overthink too much but you should be thorough and also watch the competition.”

- Monica Musonda is founder and Chief Executive Officer of Java Foods, a food processing company based in Zambia. Monica's vision is to revolutionize the eating habits of the youth market by offering them affordable and nutritious food options made from local products. Monica is a dual-qualified English solicitor and Zambian advocate with over 15 years of experience in legal practice and corporate management, including being corporate counsel at the International Finance Corporation and for Aliko Dangote of Dangote Industries Limited.

Videos

Do you want to be a spectator or a participant in your country? Monica Musonda narrates her journey into entrepreneurship as a Zambian woman. Working for the richest man in Africa, her former employer Aliko Dangote asked “Where are the Zambian Banks & Factories?” Monica reflected on how Nigerians run their economy and this inspired her to actively participate in her own country’s economy.

BongoHive Insaka held on the 18th of February 2014 at BongoHive, where it hosted lawyer turned entrepreneur, Monica Musonda who is CEO & Founder of Java Foods, a Zambian based food processing company established to provide affordable nutrition to the Southern African market.

Quotes

“It’s always good to take baby steps and grow with time. There is no rushed success that lasts.”

- Monica Musonda is founder and Chief Executive Officer of Java Foods, a food processing company based in Zambia. Monica's vision is to revolutionize the eating habits of the youth market by offering them affordable and nutritious food options made from local products. Monica is a dual-qualified English solicitor and Zambian advocate with over 15 years of experience in legal practice and corporate management, including being corporate counsel at the International Finance Corporation and for Aliko Dangote of Dangote Industries Limited.

"But the real question is what are we as Africans doing? Are we going to be active participants in the growth and development of our continent or are we going to be satisfied with being spectators? As Africans, we need to take advantage of the opportunities, create sustainable development and wealth. We need to lead the way and invest in Africa."

- Monica Musonda is founder and Chief Executive Officer of Java Foods, a food processing company based in Zambia. Monica's vision is to revolutionize the eating habits of the youth market by offering them affordable and nutritious food options made from local products. Monica is a dual-qualified English solicitor and Zambian advocate with over 15 years of experience in legal practice and corporate management, including being corporate counsel at the International Finance Corporation and for Aliko Dangote of Dangote Industries Limited.

“Have a vision and passion. Be courageous, focused and disciplined. Lastly, persist… it’s definitely not easy.”

- Monica Musonda is founder and Chief Executive Officer of Java Foods, a food processing company based in Zambia. Monica's vision is to revolutionize the eating habits of the youth market by offering them affordable and nutritious food options made from local products. Monica is a dual-qualified English solicitor and Zambian advocate with over 15 years of experience in legal practice and corporate management, including being corporate counsel at the International Finance Corporation and for Aliko Dangote of Dangote Industries Limited.

“Don’t happily be a spectator in your own economy,”

-Monica Musonda is founder and Chief Executive Officer of Java Foods, a food processing company based in Zambia. Monica's vision is to revolutionize the eating habits of the youth market by offering them affordable and nutritious food options made from local products. Monica is a dual-qualified English solicitor and Zambian advocate with over 15 years of experience in legal practice and corporate management, including being corporate counsel at the International Finance Corporation and for Aliko Dangote of Dangote Industries Limited

Social Impact

Awards & Accolades

Monica's recent awards and honours include:

2014 - Monica is named to the Choiseul Institute of France’s ‘Africa’s 100 Most Promising Young Business Leaders Under the Age of 40’ List

2013 - Monica is nominated Young Global Leader of 2013 by the World Economic Forum

2013 - Monica is nominated by the African Leadership Institute to become an Archbishop Desmond Tutu Leadership Fellow

2013 - Monica is named as one of the 20 Young Power Women in Africa by Forbes